A lot of wining in a very short time...

Panini @ VWC - Yum!

Headed up to the Valencia Wine Company for the monthly meeting of the Grape of the Night back on the 11th. This month's grape was Cabernet Franc, and we had 7 wines to sample, ranging from inexpensive 'supermarket' wine to seriously overpriced.

Cabernet Franc is one of the major black grape varieties worldwide. It is principally grown for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot in the Bordeaux style, but can also be vinified alone, as in the Loire's Chinon. Cabernet Franc is lighter than Cabernet Sauvignon, making a bright pale red wine and contributing finesse and a peppery perfume to blends with more robust grapes. Depending on growing region and style of wine, additional aromas can include tobacco, raspberry, and cassis, sometimes even violets. Records of Cabernet Franc in Bordeaux go back to the end of the 18th century; it was planted in Loire long before that. DNA analysis indicates Cabernet Franc is one of two parents of Cabernet Sauvignon, a cross between it and Sauvignon Blanc.

Wining, wining, wining...the wining never stops!

Grape of the Night @ VWC

Attended an intimate Grape of the Night at the Valencia Wine Companylast Monday, the 7th. Ringmaster Eve Bushman put out the call, per Rusty Dale Sly's command, for Bordeaux wines. You know, from France. JD & I showed up with a chilled 2008 Chateau Tertre de Launay from the Entre Deux Mers region, setting the bar pretty high, if I say so myself. A couple of attendees, who said they never drink white Bordeaux, had to admit it was pretty tasty (technical term, of course); a crisp, citrusy Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon blend that had a soft, honeyed finish. Yum!

Other hits of the night were the 2003 Chateau Franc, a lush blend of 65% Merlot and 35% Cabernet Franc, and the 2006 Chateau Tour Pauillac Cru Bourgeois, a 70/30 blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. I do love Bordeaux! Next month, GOTN will feature Petit Sirah, that deceptively named grape that is anything but small.

Jumping into the new year, wining as we go...

2010 ended with a bang and a whole lotta Champagne. 2011 started quietly while we rehydrated. But JD and I are back in full swing now!

We started at the monthly Monday night meeting of Grape of the Night at the Valencia Wine Company. January's topic was Rhone-variety blends from anywhere. We had a nice crowd including Four Brix owner/winemakers Steve and Lora Simonsgaard. We had met the Simonsgaards a few times before, but this time we got a chance to really visit with them, especially as they poured their 2008 Rhondezvous, a delightful blend of 43% Syrah, 29% Mourvedre, 18% Grenache, 10% Counoise, aged for 16 months in French oak barrels. There were some other interesting blends that night, lots of lively conversation and plans for upcoming events. Another big hit of the night was 2007 Pulchella, another local winery sourcing their grapes from the Paso Robles region.

Too much wining going on?

I can't keep up! JD and I have been attending so many wonderful events and evenings that I don't know how to get everything written. This would be much easier if I didn't have a day job that really gets in the way of my writing during daytime hours. Yet another reason why I need to make this wine education gig start to pay off.

Wining in Valencia...with Burgers!

Just a lazy Sunday (well, lazy for JD and me) at the Valencia Wine Company, where Guy and Jeff and Julie were running around like very busy wine people, while pairing some exquisite wines with burgers and sandwiches.

I never actually got the name of the folks whose truck was there doing the catering - and as soon as I get it, I will publish it.  They were great! Follow-up note - info just in from Julie:  The caterers were Elvis and Einsteins.

Cabernet Blue Cheese Burger with Cabernet peppercorn sauce - Blogger extraordinaire Eve Hammond Bushman and I each had one, along with crazy delicious crunchy garlic fries with Parmesan cheese and arugula.  This was paired with a 2006 Crescendo Cabernet Sauvignon.  O. M. G.  If you look at the photo, there is an olive wrapped in bacon and deep-fried tooth-picked to the top of the burger, which also included lettuce, tomato, bacon, and red sauce.  Just the best burger I have ever had.

Billion Dollar Bite -  bib lettuce, tomato, onion, bacon, Smoked Gouda,topped with a tomato jalapeno relish

Shoreline Club - Grilled Chicken breast with provolone, bacon, avocado,tomato, bib lettuce, with a Tomato Port aioli

Bruschetta Burger - Marinara Goat Spread, Marinated Tomato basil

The Wildcard - Grilled Sirloin Burger with Ginger BBQ Hot Mustard Sauce, Shrimp Fritter with Sweet Soy and Spicy Mayo.  JD enjoyed one of these babies, paired with a 2005 Pope Valley Merlot.  After he pulled off the offending tomatoes and peppers, he settled in and finished it off.

We needed more wine, and we were sitting outside, where it was getting very hot, so we got an icy Bellussi Prosecco.  It was crisp and very fruity, and sort of reminded me of those fruit-flavored sparkling waters.  JD and Steve W. (new friend) and I really liked it, but Eve thought it was too sweet.  Or something.  Oh well.

It was just lovely to sit and chat, especially sharing a table with Eve, who knows pretty much everyone in Santa Clarita and Valencia!  The place was bustling, everyone seemed happy - a darn near perfect day!

Tomorrow, I start 2 days of intensive instruction about Spanish wines.  Stay tuned!!

Cheers!

Grape of the Night in Valencia...Tasting Paso Robles...

Due to the honorable Rusty Sly's work conflict, blogger and Wine101er extraordinaire Eve Hammond Bushman invited me to be the guest wineau - I mean speaker - for the monthly Grape of the Night held at the Valencia Wine Company. It's kind of amazing to me how much time JD and I are spending at VWC, but proprietor Guy LeLarge and his knowledgeable and charming crew have created a friendly and warm haven for the person who wants to spend some quality time surrounded by great wines and like-minded people. That's Guy and Eve pictured to the right.

This month's Grape of the Night assignment was for everyone to bring a bottle of wine from the Paso Robles area of California. For those of you not familiar with Paso Robles - where have you been?

Trying to catch up...Georgian Wines

Yikes!  Thought I was holding things together only to discover I hadn't written anything since the end of February!  And JD and I were in such a hurry to get out of town in Feb that I completely forgot to write about an unusual and fun tasting we attended at the Valencia Wine Company back on 2/6.  So here's a quick catch up, of sorts...

06-Feb-2010 - Exploring Georgia - Wines from the Republic of Georgia (the former SSR).  Guy LeLarge at the Valencia Wine invited Gregory Alonzo of Terrell Wines  (pictured, right) to bring in a selection of wines from the oldest wine producing region in the world.  Traditional Georgian grape varietals are not very well known in the West, even though there are some 500 to choose from, of which only 38 are available for commercial consumption.  Georgia is at the same productive latitude as France and Northern California.

Wining in Valencia...

Monday night, JD and I attended our first "Grape of the Night" event hosted by Rusty Dale Sly and blogger Eve Bushman at the Valencia Wine Company.  Once a month or so, Rusty and Eve collect a group of winos...um...wine enthusiasts to taste their way through a whole lotta bottles of a single varietal.  This month's singular grape was Syrah, or as it's known in other parts of the world, Shiraz.  The criteria for each bottle is that it consist of at least 85% of the specified grape.

JD and I got there early so that we could choose a bottle from the diverse choices offered by proprietor Guy LeLarge.  Rusty said he brought a special bottle of M. Chapoutier Hermitage, and I said I was thinking about a French wine myself.  I settled on 2007 Domaine La Bastide (Vin de Pays d'Hautervie - Provence), we ordered a combination cheese and meat plate, and waited for the rest of the tasters to arrive.

By around 7:15 we had collected 17 or 18 tasters and 12 bottles of wines from France, California and Australia.  Guy began opening the bottles ably assisted by the lovely Julie and friend Vic (who is actually from another wine store - it's a small, friendly community!).  Eve and Rusty provided some background about Syrah/Shiraz and we began to taste!

Wine tasting at home...

Had a lovely group of friends over on Saturday for a WineShop at Home tasting.  JD and I straightened up the house, and tried to figure out how to seat 10 guests in our tiny living room.  We set out smoked Gouda, Dubliner Cheddar, double-cream Brie, and a wonderful Stilton, along with Carr's water crackers, red table grapes and a selection of dark chocolates.  Guest Dana Amromin, a genius pastry chef, brought her homemade truffles... sigh... perfection.

The wines were as follows, and I'd like to point out that this is the order in which I served them, not the order that WineShop at Home listed on the menus: